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E46 (1999 - 2006) The fourth generation 3 Series (E46 chassis) was introduced in 1999 and set the standard for engineering and performance during it's years of production including being named to Car & Driver's 10 best list every one of those years! ! -- View the E46 Wiki

Valve cover gaskets do seem to be a popular thing, BMW at one of their free inspection clinics quoted me like 450 for it. Also check the oil filter housing ( I think that's what it's called?) and those to fix are pricey

Hey guys! my Bmw 323i - 00 Engine Head Gasket probably broke today, because i got oil in the water or at least Im hoping its just the gasket. My question is can i buy a 1 mm gasket instead of the 0.7mm gasket even if Im not planing on grinding the head? will the 0.3 mm difference change the compression? And has anybody changed the gasket on this engine? Is It hard? and do i need any special tools for it?

Hey guys! my Bmw 323i - 00 Engine Head Gasket probably broke today, because i got oil in the water or at least Im hoping its just the gasket. My question is can i buy a 1 mm gasket instead of the 0.7mm gasket even if Im not planing on grinding the head? will the 0.3 mm difference change the compression? And has anybody changed the gasket on this engine? Is It hard? and do i need any special tools for it?

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Brainblonde can you take a picture of where you think the leak is coming from for us?. We can help you further with a good pic or... if you know where it is leaking from already. usually it's valve cover gasket or oil filter housing gasket.

I took my 2001 325i in (150K miles) after suffering some oil leaks for a while. I previously had the valve gasket replaced, but they showed me the under carriage and described in detail what they would need to do. Basically there's a lot of seals that need replacing and unfortunately requires disassembling a lot of the car. This is a local mechanic that does great work at a cheap price. I believe they quoted $150 in parts & about $500 in labor. If it's all wheel drive or the M3, the price for labor doubled. Not too bad considering my car is still in great shape.

I took my 2001 325i in (150K miles) after suffering some oil leaks for a while. I previously had the valve gasket replaced, but they showed me the under carriage and described in detail what they would need to do. Basically there's a lot of seals that need replacing and unfortunately requires disassembling a lot of the car. This is a local mechanic that does great work at a cheap price. I believe they quoted $150 in parts & about $500 in labor. If it's all wheel drive or the M3, the price for labor doubled. Not too bad considering my car is still in great shape.

$150 for a new valve cover gasket set and $500 to replace it, $1000 in labor for an xi? The $500 I can see, it's not $150 for a new valve cover gasket set though.. if that's all that's leaking it's about $30 from Max minus shipping. (oembimmerparts.com). $500 in labor... I can see that. $1000 for an xi? That makes no sense since to my knowledge there is no difference Lol. None at all. I have an xi and replaced my VCGs. Was a damn hastle but I would certainly do it for anyone nice enough to give me a solid 1k.
If it was an indy you should have tried to get him (or her) to do more than that though, definitely plugs while he was in there. Shouldn't have costed you anymore imo.

I previously had the valve gasket cover replaced for around $250 including parts. The next step to stopping my oil leaks are to replace all of the seals in the under carriage and that requires a lot of disassembling. That's where the $500 labor for 2-wheel or $1000 for 4-wheel drive comes in. This place does excellent work and their rate is only $60/hour...half of what the local BMW dealer charges. Plus, they're always fine if I bring my own parts. Usually I don't need to because they don't have a lot of mark up.

Can you let me know if they fix the oil leaks in your car and what they find out.
I would like to know because I just bought a 2001 325i.
I can see that the car is been leaking oil from the valve cover (low side). the replacement of the valve cover gasket is knowm but!!!
Also, I can see oil on the side of the engine above and around the engine mounting bracket. So, I am trying to figure out or find a thread about this issue.
thanks,

Valve Cover Gasket and Oil Filter Housing Gasket are the two that come to mind. What are the other two ? I have a small leak that I have to chase down. I know it's not VCG. It seems to be in the area of the OFHG. I also know my Oil Level Sensor is bad. Could that be leaking? I do think its coming from higher than that.

Valve Cover Gasket and Oil Filter Housing Gasket are the two that come to mind. What are the other two ? I have a small leak that I have to chase down. I know it's not VCG. It seems to be in the area of the OFHG. I also know my Oil Level Sensor is bad. Could that be leaking? I do think its coming from higher than that.